After much preparation and anticipation, our first day in court will begin in just two short days. Appalachian Voices, along with its partners, Kentucky Riverkeeper, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, and Waterkeeper Alliance will appear in court in Franklin County, Kentucky this Wednesday to begin the first portion of litigation against ICG, Inc. (now owned by Arch Coal) and Frasure Creek Mining, two of the largest coal mining companies in Kentucky.

We have filed two notices of intent to sue for a combined total of more than 24,000 violations of the Clean Water Act by both companies. This initial hearing serves to determine whether the $660,000 in fines issued by the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet against the two companies are fair, reasonable and in the public interest. The fines were issued as a response by the Cabinet to our initial notice of intent to sue, but the amount represents less than 1% of the more than $700 million in fines allowable under the Clean Water Act. We think the fines are woefully inadequate and we hope the judge will decide the same.

The trial is open to the public. We appreciate any of our supporters in the Frankfort area taking the time to attend this groundbreaking trial. Your presence will show the coal companies that they cannot blatantly break the law and expect it to remain concealed from the public. For those who cannot attend, we will be providing updates via the Appalachian Voices twitter feed.

The trial information:

Date: Wednesday, August 31st, scheduled to continue through September 2nd
Time: 9:00am
Place: Franklin County Courthouse
669 Chamberlain Ave
Frankfort, KY 40601
Courthouse Telephone: (502) 564-7013